The wait is over in New York on fracking. At a cabinet meeting today Governor Cuomo and his Commissioners of Health and Environmental Conservation announced that the long-awaited Final Supplemental Generic Environmental Impact Statement will be released and establish that HVHF cannot move forward...

Last week, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo vetoed a bill that would have extended the current Brownfield tax credit program for fifteen months beyond its expiration at the end of this year. The Governor apparently wishes to use the possibility that the tax credits will expire as an impetus for...

Despite the abundance of natural gas within the state and region, and the reputation of natural gas as the cleanest burning of fossil fuels, New York remains a treacherous political environment for companies seeking to expand the use or extraction of gas. The anti-fracking movement maintains a...

Continuing the recent trend, New York State has again enacted changes to New York’s election and government ethics laws in order to “restore public trust” in government. These “reforms,” which are likely to affect advocacy organizations, public officials, candidates,...

The New York Governor proposed to extend the most significant tax credits associated with New York’s Brownfield Cleanup Program (BCP) as part of his Executive Budget. The proposal tries to take a middle ground between the cheerleaders of the program, who contend that it has been a widely...

The New York State Environmental Quality Review Act (SEQRA) requires actions that may have a significant adverse environmental impact to undergo review. The City Environmental Quality Review (CEQR) contains the City of New York’s procedures for complying with SEQRA. The State statute lists...

New York City building owners and tenants are required, prior to any significant demolition or alteration work, to perform environmental testing to determine if “asbestos-containing material” or “ACM” (defined as material containing more than 1% asbestos) is present at the...

New York’s Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) recently proposed an environmental “audit incentive” policy, which is similar to the United States’ Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) long standing self-audit policy. In its draft policy, DEC encourages...

New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC), in conjunction with the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA), is currently accepting public comments on several proposed changes to the DEC’s regulations governing New York’s participation in...